No need to put a spin on Warne's record

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Records rarely last but the boy from Black Rock has a permanent place in cricket's pantheon.

About 3000 kilometres away from home, out of season and in the unlikely venue of Cairns, Victoria's greatest cricketer, Shane Warne, has equalled the record for Test wickets held by Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralitharan. One could be forgiven for thinking the match result was a tie at 527-all, as the record stole the focus. In the bittersweet aftermath of being narrowly denied victory and the outright record, Warne made some ungracious remarks. Yes, Muralitharan has been given the lion's share of bowling on "doctored" home pitches and he has taken 107 wickets in 16 Tests against the hapless Bangladesh and Zimbabwe (Warne has played only Zimbabwe, once, for six wickets). Warne at least avoided referring to doubts about his great rival's bowling action, but would have been wiser to leave it to others to make the pointed comparisons. He did not mention a self-inflicted handicap, a year's suspension for taking a banned substance. In many ways, Warne's week has been of a piece with a career in which occasional lapses into gracelessness, usually off the field, have not altered his status as a giant of the game. His 527th wicket crowned a 121/2-year career with an impact unmatched by all but a few.

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Unfortunately, only spectators at the ground, fewer than 2000, witnessed the historic moment, a sad contrast to the nationwide coverage of Dennis Lillee's then-record 310th wicket in 1981. Channel Nine did cricket a disservice by switching to The Price Is Right before offering a belated replay. Ironically, Channel Nine also chose to abandon the cliffhanger finish of Warne's very first Test as he and his captain, Allan Border, held on for a draw against India. His first Test bowling return was 1-150, statistics that, as ever, could not convey his artistry. As correspondent Peter Roebuck reported, Warne worked hard, "made several deliveries jump and spin off a pitch hitherto assumed to be dead" and bowled few bad balls. Since then, for most of his 112 Tests, he has melded inspiration and perspiration into the rare alloy of cricketing genius, transforming matches, series and the game itself with moments such as 1993's "ball of the century" that befuddled England's Mike Gatting.

Before Warne's arrival, leg spin, cricket's most difficult and intriguing skill, was almost a lost art, a part-time afterthought in Test teams stacked with fast bowlers. That was partly the influence of Lillee, who no longer ranks in the top 10 wicket takers but is forever among the greats. The same is likely to be true of Warne. For much of his time, wicketkeeper Ian Healy attracted good-natured derision for the monotony of his behind-the-stumps praise of Warne, but that was an accurate commentary on unrelenting excellence through 5248 overs, 527 wickets and countless memorable moments. As Healy once did, in simple admiration and in anticipation of more to come, we say: "Bowled, Warnie."